Apple iPad's UK launch date and pricing finally revealed

Fanbois will need to dig deep...

UK voters may still be waiting to find out the shape of their next government but at least Brits now know when the Apple iPad will be hitting these shores.

The iPad will go on sale in the UK on 28 May, Apple has announced, and will also be available in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, and Switzerland from the same day.

Apple said it will begin taking iPad pre-orders via in these countries from 10 May.

UK pricing for Apple's iPad has finally been revealed
(Photo credit: Josh P Miller/CNET)

UK pricing for the tablet has also been confirmed: the wi-fi-only tablet will cost £429, £499 or £599 for 16GB, 32GB and 64GB versions respectively, while 3G tablets will cost £529, £599 and £699.

A recent poll of silicon.com and sister site CNET UK readers revealed consumers would be happy to pay up to £399 for an iPad - meaning the official pricing is likely to bring a fair few frowns to gadget fans' faces.

Apple has already shipped more than a million iPads in the US where the email, web and app gadget has been on sale since the start of April.

Apple said US customers have downloaded more than 12 million apps from the App Store, as along with more than 1.5 million ebooks from the new iBookstore.

The iPad iBooks app and iBookstore will be available as a free download from the App Store on 28 May too.

Apple added that iPads will be sold through the Apple Store, Apple's retail stores and some Apple resellers.

In related news, Orange UK has announced iPad data pricing today.

The operator will offer iPad micro-SIMs on a pay as you go basis, charging 5p per megabyte - up to a maximum of £40 per month of use.

The operator is also offering iPad bundles: £2 for one day (with a 200MB limit); £7.50 for one week (1GB limit); and two monthly bundles: £15 or £25, with a 3GB or a 10GB usage limit respectively.

Last month O2 and Vodafone also announced they would be offering pricing for the iPad.